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Back-to-school shopping: Which supermarkets have the best deals and how to compare prices online
22nd August, 2026 01:35 PM
Back-to-school season comes with fresh expenses on top of uniforms and stationery, and prices for the same basket can differ sharply between supermarkets.
A basket comparison published in June 2026 tracked 10 everyday items, maize flour, rice, wheat flour, sugar, cooking oil, cooking fat, milk, bread, toilet paper and eggs, across the major supermarkets – Naivas, Quickmart, Carrefour and Chandarana Foodplus – and the results show gaps worth knowing before this term’s shop.
Which supermarket wins on price
Chandarana Foodplus recorded the lowest total for the sampled basket at Ksh2,263, helped by cheaper eggs, toilet paper and cooking fat.
Carrefour followed at Ksh2,311, coming out cheapest on maize flour, rice, cooking oil and bread.
Naivas totalled Ksh2,346, tying for the best price on sugar, wheat flour and milk, while Quickmart came in highest at Ksh2,348.
The gap between the cheapest and priciest supermarket was Ksh85 across just 10 products, a difference that adds up over repeated weekly shops.
No single supermarket won every item, so the cheapest option depends on exactly what is on a family’s list that week.
How to compare prices before you shop
Since no chain wins on everything, checking prices item by item beats guessing by brand name.
A few platforms help in this process.
CashBackApp lets shoppers build a list by typing product names, scanning barcodes, or uploading a photo of a handwritten list, then totals the same basket across Naivas, Carrefour, Chandarana and Quickmart.
Instagrocer works at the branch level in specific Nairobi neighbourhoods such as Kilimani, Westlands and Kasarani, since two branches of the same chain can price differently.
DealMtaani allows users to compare prices across more than 40 Kenyan retailers daily, useful for school electronics such as calculators and tablets, alongside groceries.
Matching exact pack sizes matters more than comparing store names, since a store that looks cheaper overall can still charge more for a specific product.
Building a short list of regularly bought items and checking it against two or three nearby supermarkets before the term starts remains the most reliable way to know where the shilling goes furthest this back-to-school season.
